e Fuster and Jose Arroita, followed. As _early_ as August
the roll showed an acquisition of seventy-nine neophytes. During the
first decade nearly a thousand baptisms were recorded, and the Mission
flourished in all departments. Large crops of wheat and grain were
raised, and live-stock increased rapidly. In 1804 the population
numbered 1522, the highest on record during its history, and in 1810 the
number of live-stock reported was over 20,000; but the unusual
prosperity that attended this Mission during its earlier years was
interrupted by a series of exceptional misfortunes.

The first church erected was crude and unstable, and fell rapidly into
decay. Scarcely a dozen years had passed, when it became necessary to
build a new one. This was constructed of adobe and roofed with tile. It
was completed in 1802, but although well built, it was totally destroyed
by an earthquake, as we shall see later on.

The Indians of this section were remarkably intelligent as well as
diligent, and during the first years of the Mission there were over
fifty rancherias in the district. According to the report of Padre
Payeras in 1810, they were docile and industrious. This indefatigable
worker, with the assistance of interpreters, prepared a Catechism and
Manual of Confession in the native language, which he found very useful
in imparting religious instruction and in uprooting the prevailing
idolatry. In a little over twenty years the entire population for many
leagues had been baptized, and were numbered among the converts.

This period of peace and prosperity was followed by sudden disaster. The
earthquake of 1812, already noted as the most severe ever known on the
Pacific Coast, brought devastation to Purisima. The morning of December
21 found padres and Indians rejoicing in the possession of the fruits of
their labor of years,--a fine church, many Mission buildings, and a
hundred houses built of adobe and occupied by the natives. A few hours
afterward little was left that was fit for even temporary use. The first
vibration, lasting four minutes, damaged the walls of the church. The
second shock, a half-hour later, caused the total collapse of nearly all
the buildings. Padre Payeras reported that "the earth opened in several
places, emitting water and black sand." This calamity was quickly
followed by torrents of rain, and the ensuing floods added to the
distress of the homeless inhabitants. The remains of this old Mission of
1802